


coffee: the drink of love

by shesthemuscle



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Disaster Gays, M/M, Misunderstandings, Multi, Pining, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-27
Updated: 2019-09-17
Packaged: 2020-07-22 20:30:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,522
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19996249
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shesthemuscle/pseuds/shesthemuscle
Summary: There's a new barista at Patton's favorite coffee shop who ends up changing the lives of Patton and his friends for the better.





	1. when patton met roman

The sight of Patton’s favorite coffee shop brings a bright smile to his face and his excitement for his usual coffee drink grows. It’s been a few days since he’s had a chance to get here last and he’s more than ready to partake in his favorite coffee beverage.

The bell rings as Patton pushes open the door.

The shop is fairly busy, filled with mostly regulars though by the looks of it, there are some newcomers trying the coffee for the first time. Good, its what the shop deserves.

“Hey babes. I haven’t seen you for a few days so I thought you found a new coffee shop and that broke my poor little heart,” calls out a familiar voice.

Patton looks over to the counter and sees the owner, Remy standing there with his hand dramatically over his heart.

Shaking his head, he grins at his friend’s antics.

“Oh no, I’d never do that. I know better than that,” replies Patton, “I’ve missed you and the coffee these last few days. Blame it on work.”

Remy laughs.

“Do you need me to talk to Logan?” asks Remy.

“I appreciate it but after last time…..” Patton trails off.

Signing into the register, Remy focuses on the task at hand, now that his favorite customer is here.

“So, the usual Pat?” asks Remy.

Patton nods his head.

“Yuppers!”

Remy smiles as he enters the order into the register.

“So, one large vanilla latte and let’s see what scones we have today,” he looks into the baked goods display, “one cinnamon scone for everyone’s favorite cinnamon roll.”

Patton blushes at the compliment.

“Go have a seat, Patton and I’ll bring everything over when it’s ready,” comments Remy.

“Thanks Rem,” replies Patton.

He walks over to one of the free tables by the window then scans the coffee shop, to people watch while he waits. Eventually, his gaze lands back at the counter and moves down the line from Remy helping another customer to the baristas making drinks and chatting.

In that second, Patton realizes there’s a new person behind the counter – tall, well-kept hair, a charming smile who’s making the people around him laugh as he makes the orders for the customers.

The new barista catches Patton’s eye and winks, causing him to blush then turn his head away.

\----------

On a particularly hot day, Patton decides to swing by the coffee shop for some nice and iced to drink because he needs a break from all the water and Gatorade he’s had already, to keep properly hydrated. He thinks Logan would be proud of him.

Patton waves at a couple of people he knows as he makes his way up the counter.

However, instead of Remy working the register, it’s the new barista.

_Ok Patton. You’ve got this. Just because handsome and charming doesn’t mean anything._

The man’s eyes widen in excitement when he realizes who Patton.

“Oh! You’re a friend of Remy’s and one of the first people who came here when he opened up a few years ago,” he says grinning.

Patton blinks at few times.

Then he blushes; both at the fact the man knows who he is and that Remy’s been talking about him.

“Yup! That’ll be me!” replies Patton brightly.

The man chuckles.

“So, what will it be, padre?”

“Think I’ll do the iced chai tea latte and make it a large,” Patton looks at the man’s name tag, “Roman. Thanks!”

Roman rubs the back of his neck in embarrassment.

“I didn’t introduce myself, did I? I’ve only been here a few days,” says Roman.

Patton smiles.

“No worries, that’s why name tags were invented,” replies Patton.

Roman rings him up then Patton pays before stepping out of the way of the next customer while he waits for his drink. Patton can’t help watching Roman with a smile on his face.

\----------

Weeks pass and Patton strikes up a friendship with Roman and it’s been the best few weeks of his life so far or it would be, if it wasn’t for this pesky little crush he’s developed on Roman. It’s just, Roman is so good, so kind and so charming. Really, it’s no surprise Patton’s fallen for him honestly.

Patton enters the coffee shop one day, ready to see two of his favorite people in the world (he can’t forget about Remy after all).

In the doorway, he pauses once he spots Roman – Roman standing very close to another guy dressed all in purple and black, blushing at whatever Roman’s whispering into his ear.

He decides he’s not in the mood for coffee after all.

\----------

“To be fair, it’s not like the topic of our relationship statuses ever came up. To use your words, it’s highly probable that Roman has a boyfriend. I would have been surprised if he didn’t.”

Patton stares down at the coffee in his hands and sighs.

Sitting here in this popular chain coffee shop with Logan makes him feel weird and guilty. Not the Logan part; he likes that part actually. The coffee shop is too much for him to take – too loud, too fast and too crowded.

It’s not Remy’s coffee shop.

Logan stares at his friend with a frown on his face.

“Perhaps, you should talk to Roman. Clearly, you miss him and I’m sure he misses you. You’re a hard person to not miss,” states Logan.

Patton gives him a small smile.

“Wouldn’t it be poking my nose into something that’s not my business though? If he wanted me to know, he’d tell me when he’s good and ready to,” responds Patton dejectedly.

After all, he’s been taught to respect people’s privacy.

Logan’s frown grows bigger.

“You do seem to have quite the conundrum, Patton.”

He just sighs then takes a sip of the subpar coffee.

\----------

Patton’s phone goes off, letting him know that he has a text message so he pulls out his phone and sees that its from Remy. The message is simply a video of a very sad-looking Roman trying to go about his job.

Immediately, he feels guilty.

Regardless of his feelings for Roman, Patton misses him and makes a mental note to stop by the coffee shop after work. He only hopes it won’t backfire on him and that Remy hasn’t banned him.

\----------

Opening the door to the shop, Patton’s relieved to find the place fairly empty so he won’t make a fool of himself in front of a crowd. The first person he sees is Remy, so he cautiously makes his way over to him.

“Uh, hey Remy….”

Patton bites his lip as he watches his friend freeze at the sound of his voice before slowly turn around. He wasn’t prepared for what happened next.

Remy’s eyes widen at his appearance then slowly scan Patton’s body from head to toe then back up again.

“PATTON!”

Throwing his arms around the startled Patton, Remy hugs him tightly and doesn’t let go for a few minutes.

He releases Patton from his hug but keeps hold of his hand.

“If I had known a video of Roman was all that it took to bring you back in, I would have sent it earlier,” comments Remy.

Patton blushes.

“A what of me?” asks a familiar voice.

Roman appears in the doorframe leading to the hallway the restrooms are located and Patton feels the breath leaves his body because Roman looks not very glittery like the last time Patton saw him.

Time slows down the moment Roman sees Patton standing there.

Remy lets go of Patton’s hand then slowly backs away, subtly getting the last of the customers out of the shop before flipping the sign to ‘Close’ and locking the front door. Then he watches his friends from somewhere out of the way.

Roman stumbles over his feet in a hurry to get to Patton, afraid this is a hallucination and he’ll fade away.

Eyes wide and concern for Roman hurting himself, Patton rushes towards him just in time to have Roman trip over his feet, sending him flying into Patton, who’s arms wrap around his waist as he’s knocked to the floor.

Looking up at Roman and meeting his gaze, Patton smiles brightly which is returned quickly and makes Roman look more like himself.

Roman slowly gets off of him then stands up before holding out a hand for Patton to take and he does, so with Roman’s help, he’s on his feet in seconds.

“You alright, padre? Didn’t mean to knock you over,” says Roman.

Patton gives his hand a squeeze.

“I’m good, better than good actually,” he replies.

Before either of them can say more, another voice interjects.

“What the hell is going on here?”

It’s the purple punk guy Patton say talking to Roman last time he was here. He can’t help trying to drop Roman’s hand and putting some space between them.

Roman’s having none of that.

Tugging on his hand, Roman causes Patton to stumble into him then quickly let’s go of Patton’s hand in order to wrap his arm around his shoulder instead.

Mr. Purple makes his way across the room to them.

Patton looks between the two men in confusion.

“Isn’t he your boyfriend, Roman?”

There’s silence for a couple minutes before its broken by the sound of glass breaking – Remy dropped a glass on the floor in order to cover his mouth to hide his laughter.

“Yeah no, my dude. Whoever told you that is selling something. Princey here is the closet thing I have to a brother and my best friend but he’s not my type. I prefer someone with a brain in his head. I’m Virgil, by the way and you must be Patton,” explains Virgil.

Patton shakes his hand as he blushes because of his assumption.

Roman stares at Patton with his mouth open for a few minutes before he realizes what happened.

“Oh Patton, you cute puffball you,” he comments.

Virgil smirks.

“Yeah, Princey here prefers guys who wear polos, have glasses and lots of freckles that he wants to count then kiss.”


	2. how unexpected of you

“Yeah, Princey here prefers guys who wear polos, have glasses and lots of freckles that he wants to count then kiss.”

Patton looks up at Roman, eyes wide and hope reflecting on his face.

“Do you really?” he asks.

Roman glares at Virgil for a couple seconds before focusing on Patton.

“Well yeah, padre. Why wouldn’t I?” he answers.

Patton blushes then let’s himself lean into Roman’s side causing the man to grin brightly in response.

“I feel like a real idiot,” comments Patton.

Moving so he’s standing in front of Patton, Roman cups his face with both of his hands to make him look at him as he talks.

“Hey now, you’re a lot of things but an idiot is not one of them. Looking back to when I’m assuming you first saw me with Virgil, I can see where you’d get that idea of us. You had my full attention from the moment I winked at you,” says Roman softly.

Patton tears up at Roman’s words.

“Oh Roman….”

Pushing himself up on his toes, Patton places his hands on Roman’s shoulders then kissed him – softly, gently and like how’s he always imagined kissing Roman. It didn’t Roman long to move one hand to Patton’s waist as the other found a more comfortable position on Patton’s face.

They pull away after a few moments and smile.

“This deserves Remy’s special hot chocolate to celebrate the two oblivious dorks finally working things out!” interrupts Remy.

Virgil smirks.

“I’ll drink to that,” he says.

Roman gives them the bird.

“Be nice, Roman.”

“Only for you, puffball.”

Patton pulls himself out of Roman’s grasp long enough to grab his hand and lead him over to the plush couches in the corner with Virgil following them. They make themselves comfortable on the two-seater while Virgil chooses one of the chairs.

“So, Virgil…how long have you known Roman?” asks Patton.

Virgil’s clearly important to Roman so Patton wants to get to know the other man better and he’s of the philosophy that a person can never have too many friends.

Meeting Roman’s gaze, Virgil picks up on the subtle panic his best friend is feeling then smirks. He’s gonna enjoy getting to know Patton.

“Since before we were born. Our moms met in college and became close then stayed close throughout the years. It was only natural that we’d have a close bond to,” answers Virgil.

“Aww, that’s so cute!” Patton squeals, clapping his hands.

As annoyed Roman wants to be at Virgil, he can’t help smiling dopily at Patton’s reaction. He really is the personification of the sun.

“Alright babes! Hot chocolate is here! Enjoy it while it’s hot!” interrupts Remy bring over a tray with four mugs on it.

“Here are two for our love birds,” he hands over the mugs in a quick and fluid motion, “one for the Verge,” he passes one over to Virgil, “and the last one is for the coffee shop owner in town.”

Remy sets the trail down to the side then claims the other seat for himself.

Frowning slightly, Patton expected Remy to sit on his other side.

Conversation drops in favor of drinking the hot chocolate, the only sounds heard are sipping sounds.

“This is really great Remy! But then again, it always is when you make anything,” gushes Patton, shooting a bright smile at Remy.

Remy ducks his head to hide a pleased smiled.

Next to him, Virgil stares back and forth between the two men as he senses something going on.

Patton snuggles close to Roman then smiles up at him while holding the warm mug between his hands causing the other man to lean down and kiss him on the forehead. This is nice though he felt bad about wasting time over a stupid mistake. Wincing internally, he could almost feel Logan smacking him upside the head.

_OH!_

_That’s an idea, Patton!_

“Hey Roman, since I met your best friend, it’s only fair that you meet mine, well besides Remy, you already know him,” suggests Patton.

“That’s a brilliant idea, padre! I’d be delighted to,” replies Roman.

\----------

Getting Logan to agree to meet Roman proves more challenging than Patton anticipates but he’s stubborn. He really wants his best friend and boyfriend to meet and Logan gives in eventually.

“I do not understand why you insist that I meet Roman,” Logan comments.

“Lo, you’re both super important to me,” answers Patton.

Logan tries to smother a smile at the notion of Patton thinking he’s important. It makes him feel warm, for some reason.

“Who is-who is that with Roman?” he asks trying to maintain his composure.

Patton looks at him for a moment then follows his gaze, spotting Virgil standing with Roman. Then he looks back at Logan and spots a slight blush on his cheeks.

“Virgil, he’s Roman’s best friend. I didn’t know he was coming. We can do this some other time if you’re uncomfortable, Lo.”

Shaking his head, Logan swallows twice before speaking.

“Nonsense. It’s more practical to conduct the meeting this way,” Logan responds.

Patton beams.

Three of his favorite people are spending time with him, this is gonna be great!

They walk up to Roman and Virgil, who’re chatting lightly.

“Hey Roman!” greets Patton before kissing his cheek.

“Hello love. Sorry about Virgil – he was bored so he decided to gate-crash our outing,” replies Roman.

Patton claps his hands.

“Don’t be. The more, the merrier!”

Roman smiles softly at him, pleased his boyfriend likes his best friend.

“Logan, I’d like to introduce you to Roman, my boyfriend and his best friend, Virgil,” says Patton.

Logan opens his mouth to say something but shakes his head.

“It is indeed good to meet you in person, Roman. Patton speaks highly of you,” greets Logan.

“The feeling’s mutual,” responds Roman.

“Hi! Nice to Virgil, I’m meet you,” Virgil shakes his head, “I mean, it’s nice to meet you and I’m Virgil.”

Logan smiles.

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well," he replies.

Roman raises an eyebrow at his best friend's behavior then looks over at Patton, who's watching them as well. He meets Roman's gaze and nods his head.

"Well, if you two wanna get more acquainted out here then Patton and I'll go inside if you wanna join us," comments Roman.

Logan and Virgil blush at his comment.

Taking Roman's hand before he can get punched, Patton pulls him after him into the restaurant where he gets a table for four because he knows Logan's impeccable manners wouldn't allow for him to ditch Patton and Roman even if that's what he wants.

Sliding into one side of the booth next to Patton, Roman drapes his arm across his boyfriend's shoulders lightly with a pleased smirk on his face when Virgil notices he'll be sitting close to Logan.

This should be interesting.

From the look on Virge's face, Roman knows he's gonna get shit for this later but it's so worth it; he believes his best friend deserves to be as happy as he is and by looking at Specs, Virgil could be just what he needs.

\----

After the first lunch together, the quartet begins to hang out regularly -- mostly at Logan and Patton's apartment.

It seems like things are working out for the best.

He steps into the coffee shop and looks around before spotting Remy wiping down a table.

"Hey Remy! It's good to see you," he says cheerfully.

Remy continues cleaning instead of giving Patton a hug like usual.

"Is it though?" he asks sardonically.

Patton frowns.

"Remy? What's wrong?"

He brushes past Patton roughly, ignoring the question entirely and leaving Patton to watch him walk away.

Patton shakes his head before heading to the counter to order his drink then finds a table so he can keep an eye out for his friend. By the time his drink is gone, Patton hasn't seen Remy once and it leaves a hollow sensation in his chest. He returns the mug to the counter before sighing and leaving the cafe.

Unknown to him, Remy watches from nearby before wiping away a tear that's fallen.

\---

Roman holds Patton close while Virgil and Logan sit nearby and wearing matching concerned looks on their faces ever since Patton returned to the apartment far later than he said he would be. Yet, they haven't been able to get anything out of him about the source of his unusual mood.

“How about we watch a movie?” suggests Virgil.

Logan nods approvingly, not noticing the blush on Virgil’s face.

“Brilliant idea, Virgil. While I don’t usually encourage the consumption of pizza, it is the only suitable food besides popcorn for a movie night and since we’re out of popcorn, I’ll order a pizza for us while everyone else decides on the movie,” comments Logan.

While Logan takes care of ordering the pizza and gathering beverages for everyone, Virgil takes stock of their options. His eyes land on one Disney movie in particular and smirks.

Oh, this is rather fitting.

He turns back to the duo on the couch.

“Either of you have suggestions for movies?” he asks.

Patton shakes his head then presses his face into Roman’s shoulder as his boyfriend strokes his back gently.

“Normally, I have opinions on the matter but this one time, I’ll trust you with finding a movie. I know your tastes are at least better than Remus’,” he says firmly.

Virgil snorts at the mention of Roman’s twin.

“Ain’t that the truth. I don’t think Patton’s ready for that; hell, I’ve known Remus for years and I’m not ready for that,” replies Virgil.

Roman laughs.

His brother has a rather unique taste in movies, that’s for sure.

Virgil grabs the DVD and pops into the player before setting the tv up but not starting it until Logan joins them and the pizza has arrived.

_The Princess and the Frog_ appears on the title screen.

Roman’s jaw drops open while Virgil and Logan laugh; he knows exactly why Virgil picked this movie though its worth it when he hears Patton giggle.

The men settle in to enjoy a delightful Disney movie though none of them make it through the whole thing.

The sound of the tv shutting off wakes Patton and he looks up from where he’s cuddling Roman to see Logan holding the remote while trying his best to not wake up Virgil, asleep on his chest. He meets Logan’s gaze and grins knowingly causing Logan to shake his head really fast in response. Patton’s smile softens which Logan returns, the relief of seeing Patton smiling clear on his face.

As if knowing Patton’s awake, Roman squeezes him tightly for a few moments in his sleep.

“Go. To. Sleep,” mouths Logan.

“Only if you do too,” responds Patton softly.

Logan rolls his eyes but adjusts his position so he and Virgil are comfortable before closing his eyes.

An impromptu sleepover is just what the doctor ordered.

Maybe, tomorrow Patton will find the courage to talk about Remy’s strange behavior.


End file.
